A Noble Steed

"You brought Mr. Tootsie?!" Tina cried as Hilda pulled a bright yellow rubber ducky out of the sack of her belongings, leaning on it for support. "Why would you bring one of my toys on a rescue mission?!"

"I thought you might need some comfort after your endeavor. You always loved Mr. Tootsie."

"I'm a grown woman, mother. I don't have time for silly toys." Tina stomped her foot on the floor as if that would emphasize her point.

"Well, it's a good thing I brought him, in any case, because he's going to save our hides." Hilda started unfurling the twine from the spool and tossed a cord to Tina. "Wrap this around your waist."

"Wait, what are we doing?" Tina asked, holding the twine in her hands. As Hilda tied the twine around her own waist, and then around the neck of the rubber ducky, Tina put two and two together and her heart sank. "Oh, no. Nonononono, this is a very bad idea."

"What do you mean?" Hilda asked as she started to lift up the ducky from the rear, her arms wrapped around the tail.

"You expect us to get off of this giant pirate ship, completely unarmed, with bloodthirsty buccaneers around every corner, while we're the size of dolls, on a rubber ducky-" on cue, a loud crack of thunder echoed outside the window, "-in a torrential thunderstorm?!"

Hilda looked back at her daughter, confused. "Yeah? And?"

Tina blinked in surprise, taken aback by her mother's brazenness. "Mother, I'm not ready to die on this journey. I certainly don't want to die while naked and tiny."

"That's dramatic dear, we'll be fine. Now grab the other end, it's a bit big for me."

"Mother! Going out there in this is suicide! What happens if we fall off?"

"That's what the rope's for."

"But we could capsize! We could fly away in the wind. We could-"

"Hilda grabbed her daughter by the shoulders and looked her square in the eyes. "We could spend all night worrying about what could happen, but if we don't get out of here, those pirates will find your father, your siblings, and everyone else back home. We have to save them, and the only way to do that is to get back home before these pirates. You want to save your family, don't you?"

"Of course I do, but-"

"But nothing. You're a knight now, Tina, and sometimes knights have to act even when the odds are against them. Lord knows I've had the odds stacked against me more times than I can count, but I'm still here. And if you're anything like me, you wouldn't let something like this keep you down." She stepped back, holding out her hand to Tina. "Now, will you help me save our family?"

Tina looked at her mother, dumbfounded by her confidence. Here she was, naked, unarmed, and reduced to the size of a toy, and she still had all of the brash confidence that she had in her youth. Right now, she was everything Tina was trying to become, or that she'd thought she could be when all of this started just a couple of days ago. She didn't know what she was at the moment, but one thing was clear: she wasn't going to let herself be stepped on, even at six inches tall. She took her mother's hand. "Just tell me what to do."

...

Astrid had just finished tying down the drow below decks, readying the hull for the oncoming storm, and was heading back up to the main deck to check on Shita. Truthfully, she knew the first mate could take care of herself, but that didn't stop her from worrying. Astrid always told herself that eventually, she would find the confidence to express her true feelings for the ravishing dark elf, but for now, she was satisfied with the male. He was feminine enough for her tastes. Besides, Shita was still head over heels for the captain, so that door was closed for the moment.

As she climbed the stairs, Astrid took a look a the rain that was pelting the deck, glad the captain had the clarity of mind not to set them to sea before this storm consumed them. As prideful as she was, Rey Darkwing was a smart pirate, or at least smart enough to keep their merry band in moderate success.

As she picked up the last crate of supplies from the deck, a bit of movement caught the corner of Astrid's eye. She turned and saw that the door to the captain's cabin had been left open. Assuming Mirelda had simply forgotten to lock the door, she walked over, placed the crate on the floor, and shut the door, fastening it. Mirelda had a bad habit of leaving things unlocked and open, not a good thing for a pirate to do. She had no idea what the captain saw in her as a crewmate, but she wasn't about to complain.

As she picked up the crate, Astrid noticed a small spot of color on the deck. Taking a second glance, she noticed the rubber ducky that they had taken from the knight's belongings rolling toward the edge of the deck. Before she could even move to grab it, it had rolled off the deck and into the ocean. "Damn," She said to no one in particular, "I hope the captain doesn't blame me for that." She remembered Rey had been hoping to have some fun with that particular bounty.

As the dwarf started walking back down to her quarters, she couldn't help but remark that something had seemed off about the duck. It had to have been her imagining things, but it had almost looked like the duck had two sets of tiny legs.